COC Canyon Country campus to host Job, Career & Intern Fair

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College of the Canyons' Canyon Country Campus is located at 17200 Sierra Highway, Canyon Country 91351.

For more information about the Canyon Country Campus Job, Career & Intern Fair or to see a list of registered employers and schedule of workshops for the day, visit www.canyons.edu/careercenter or call (661) 362-3286.

After hundreds of area job seekers attended last week's job fair on College of the Canyons' Valencia campus, COC will host a second event aimed at providing job, career and internship opportunities for local residents.

Being presented by College of the Canyons and The Signal, the Canyon Country campus Spring 2009 Job, Career & Intern Fair will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday May 13, in the campus' outdoor Carl A. Rasmussen Amphitheater.

"Last week's event attracted a large collection of businesses and employers of all kinds and was tremendously successful. Local Job seekers came out in force and employers left with plenty of resumes," said Anthony Michaelides, director of career services at the college. "With a group of both new and returning employers expected to attend the Canyon Country Job, Career & Intern Fair we're hoping to attract a similar crowd."

The event is free and open to the public with more than 30 employers expected to attend. Career fields that have been represented at past job fairs include law enforcement, marketing, medical, sales, finance, recreation, education, computers and engineering. In addition to featuring various levels of employment opportunities, job fair organizers have also invited a number of businesses offering paid internship opportunities.

"Events like the Job, Career & Intern Fair provide a tremendous opportunity for community members to tap into the resources of the Canyon Country Campus," said Dr. Dena Maloney, Founding Dean of the campus. "Helping to bridge the gap between employers and our students and community members is part of our mission here at College of the Canyons."

As a special service offered to all Job, Career & Intern Fair attendees the college's Career Center staff will be on hand to conduct a series of informative workshops for job seekers to utilize on their path to employment.

Containing tips, techniques and information about a variety of job search subjects - including the application process, interview techniques and how to properly follow up with potential employers - workshops will be held at 10 a.m., 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. on the day of the event and run approximately one hour in length.

"The keys to any successful job search are planning, focus and execution. So the workshops will focus on those areas while giving attendees an opportunity to practice their execution," said Gary Saenger, president of Saenger Associates and member of the College of the Canyons Foundation board of directors, who suggested implementing workshops into the event schedule.

"Very few applicants actually practice their delivery in response to commonly asked application and interview questions," added Saenger. "These workshops will be beneficial to anyone going through the job search process."

Offering a tip to all jobseekers, Michaelides stresses the fact that the structure of job fairs has changed dramatically in recent years and job seekers must be ready to adapt to such changes.

With an electronic application process fast becoming the norm, some job seekers may be disappointed to not go through an onsite interview or receive a job offer the day of the event. However most businesses that attend job fairs are still actively recruiting new employees and use the event to inform the public about current and upcoming job openings, explain their company's application process and conduct some level of employee screenings.

Nevertheless, the applicant's main goal should be to present him or herself professionally while asking as many questions as possible about the employer and any potential job openings.

"Regardless of how much success someone has with getting questions answered at the fair, they should still go home and apply online, if that's what the employer asks them to do," Michaelides said.

"My advice to job seekers is to take advantage of every resource out there," added Michaelides. "The Canyon Country Campus Job, Career & Intern Fair is an ideal place to start, but online job listings, company websites, employment agencies, job clubs and networking opportunities can all be extremely helpful."